Najib, the Mother Hen to Ahmad Ismail

KUALA LUMPUR: UMNO deputy president Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak has apologised for the statement made by one of the party's division leaders which resulted in a lot of criticism from the Chinese community. [The Star, 3/9/08]

DAP rejected UMNO deputy president's apology as they believed Ahmad Ismail was the one who should have done so. [Malaysiakini, 3/9/08]

The last thing the Malaysian people want is a hollow apology from UMNO deputy president Datuk Seri Najib Razak when the guilty party is Bukit Bendera UMNO chief Datuk Ahmad Ismail. Therefore, Najib should not play Mother Hen and shield Ahmad Ismail under his wings from public scrutiny.

What the Malaysian people demand is a formal public apology from Ahmad Ismail. Not yours, Najib.

According to Malaysiakini, Ahmad Ismail had called the Chinese community here in Malaysia as 'temporary citizens' and should be treated that way during a political speech at Permatang Pauh. (Read UMNO has lost the plot on a story called "Malaysia") Both Malaysiakini and The Star also reported that several Chinese groups including MCA Youth did not take too kindly to Ahmad Ismail's comments.

On September 2, Najib as UMNO deputy president apologized to the public on behalf of Ahmad Ismail which he claimed that his statements "did not reflect UMNO's views".

“We will apologise. UMNO apologises. It (Ahmad Ismail's comments) was totally unwarranted and doesn’t reflect the position and attitude of Umno or the leadership of Umno. We regret it very much,” Najib said during a press conference. [The Star 3/9/08]

Najib also affirmed that the comments were entirely Ahmad Ismail's personal opinion and will refer the issue to the UMNO Supreme Council for disciplinary actions.

The Mother Hen can flap all the wings she want but it will not mean a thing unless Ahmad Ismail himself comes out to face the music. The Bukit Bendera chief joins a league of UMNO members who, in recent years had made reckless racist statements against other ethnic minority groups in the country.

On September 1, The Malaysian Insider and The Sun reported that DAP, Gerakan and MCA members around the country have lodged police reports against the UMNO division chief for sedition and have mounted pressure on the authorities to take the appropriate action.

Interestingly, Gerakan and MCA are component parties of Barisan Nasional, the ruling coaltion which UMNO currently heads.

Gerakan and MCA's willingness to condemn "one of their own" deserves a special note of commendation. In retrospect, it is also possible that the March 8 Elections was a wake up call for Barisan Nasional component parties to finally come out of their shell and speak up for justice. Nonetheless, both Gerakan and MCA should be given the benefit of the doubt for their stand against racism.

The latest efforts against racism from Gerakan and MCA received mixed responses from the UMNO camp. Perak UMNO Youth Chief Zainol Padzi Paharudin (left) explained that Ahmad Ismail's actions were actually justified and should not be blown out of proportions. He reasoned that Ahmad Ismail was merely trying to raise the spirits of the Malay audience during the Permatang Pauh by-election campaign.

At the expense of national unity, Zainol? As he had unintentionally admitted, this is exactly how UMNO exploits racial sentiments to gain support from the Malay community.

Zainol also disagreed with Gerakan's way of handling the issue and claimed that the component party should have control over its members. Surprisingly enough, MCA wasn't targeted by the Perak UMNO Youth Chief.

"Sometimes when we talk too much, we forget. So let's not be too sensitive. Gerakan has to understand the meaning of 'power-sharing'," Zainol said.

"Therefore, Gerakan should be responsible to keep their members in check so that they do not take any actions that will undermine the other component parties of Barisan Nasional." [Malaysiakini, 2/9/08]

Was Zainol trying to imply that loyalty to a political party is more important than the service to the Malaysian people?

When Gerakan and MCA chose to go against the tide and voice their dissatisfactions, it was done in service to the Malaysian people. There is nothing wrong with that. In fact, it is UMNO who should keep their members 'in check'...and possibly their mouths shut.


*Update* - There was a mistake with the photograph of Zainol Padzi Paharudin as pointed out by "azisirikit" and have been replaced with the correct one. Thanks "azisirikit" for the notice and my sincere apologies to all for the mistake.


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